Williams in talks with Raikkonen over F1 return

Updated: 06 November 2011 22:16 IST

British Formula One stable Williams are in talks with former world champion Kimi Raikkonen in a bid to get the Finn racing for them next season, the team's Austrian owner Christian Wolff told the daily Kronen Zeitung on Sunday.

Written by Agence-France Presse

Read Time: 2 mins

Vienna:

British Formula One stable Williams are in talks with former world champion Kimi Raikkonen in a bid to get the Finn racing for them next season, the team's Austrian owner Christian Wolff told the daily Kronen Zeitung on Sunday.

Raikkonen, now 32, won the drivers' world title with Ferrari in 2007, but left F1 after 2008 and has driven in world rallying for the last two years.

"Yes it's true we're in talks with Kimi Raikkonen. This isn't a publicity stunt, we're having very serious discussions," said Wolff.

He said that Raikkonen was "just one of different options" being considered by the team, adding that "it would be a strategic decision".

If he is recruited by Williams, Raikkonen would probably replace Brazilian veteran Rubens Barrichello, 39, as team-mate to Venezuelan Pastor Maldonado.

Raikkonen made his debut in F1 with Sauber in 2001 and won 18 of his 156 Grands Prix in a career that also saw him race for McLaren before he joined Ferrari.

Once one of the sport's greatest teams and serial winners in the 1980's and 1990's, Williams have struggled of late and this season is the worst in their history as they sit ninth of 12 teams in the constructors' table with only five points.

Wolff added that Williams were also "interested" in Force India's Adrian Sutil of Germany and Ferrari's third driver Frenchman Jules Bianchi.